MOSFET having recessed channel

ABSTRACT

A MOSFET having a recessed channel and a method of fabricating the same. The critical dimension (CD) of a recessed trench defining the recessed channel in a semiconductor substrate is greater than the CD of the gate electrode disposed on the semiconductor substrate. As a result, the misalignment margin for a photolithographic process used to form the gate electrodes can be increased, and both overlap capacitance and gate induced drain leakage (GIDL) can be reduced.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of prior divisional application Ser.No. 11/748,973, filed on May 15, 2007 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,777,273 ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/699,047, filed Oct. 30, 2003, nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,250,342, which claims priority from Korean PatentApplication No. 2003-01813, filed on Jan. 11, 2003, the disclosures ofwhich are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a metal oxide semiconductor fieldeffect transistor (MOSFET) and a method of fabricating the same. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to a MOSFET having arecessed channel, which is suitable for highly integrated semiconductorcircuits, and a method of fabricating the same.

2. Description of the Related Art

As MOSFETs become highly integrated, their channel length decreases andthey become more adversely affected by short channel effect andsource/drain punch-through. To overcome the reduction in the channellength due to the device shrinkage, a MOSFET having a recessed channelis proposed. This recessed trench is formed in a region that is to beused as the channel of a transistor and it aids in effectivelyincreasing the channel length. Thus, the area of a device can be furtherscaled down.

As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional MOSFET having a recessed channelcomprises a recessed trench 30 formed in a silicon substrate 10, whichis bonded to a gate electrode 60 formed on the silicon substrate 10.Here, the critical dimension (CD) L1 of the recessed trench 30 isadjusted to be less than the CD L2 of the gate electrode 60 such thatthe gate electrode 60 outwardly overlaps the entire recessed trench 30.Thus, during the patterning required to shape the gate electrodes thereis a small misalignment margin of error when attempting to form the gateelectrodes over the trenches.

However, in this structure, due to a patterning limit, it is difficultto form the recessed trench 30 having a small CD by usingphotolithography. Thus, a complicated process is required comprisingpatterning a silicon nitride mask for defining an opening on asubstrate, forming spacers on sidewalls of the silicon nitride mask toreduce the CD of the opening, and etching the substrate disposed underthe opening. Also, an electric field, which is focused on upper edges 70of the recessed trench 30, allows a leakage current to increase. In FIG.1, reference numeral 15 denotes a device isolation layer, 35 denotes agate oxide layer, 50 denotes a gate conductive layer, 55 denotes acapping layer, and 65 denotes a spacer.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides a MOSFET having a recessed channel thatprovides a misalignment margin necessary to enable high integration. Thepresent invention also provides a method of fabricating a MOSFET havinga recessed channel using a simplified process.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, a MOSFET having arecessed channel, in which the CD of a recessed trench defining therecessed channel in a semiconductor substrate is greater than the CD ofa gate electrode formed on the semiconductor substrate such that thegate electrode inwardly overlaps the recessed trench, is provided.

It is preferred in the present invention that a MOSFET having a recessedchannel comprises: a gate electrode, which includes a gate oxide layerthat is formed on an inner wall of the recessed trench formed in thesemiconductor substrate where a device isolation layer is formed; a gateconductive layer, which fills the recessed trench and rises over thesemiconductor substrate, wherein a portion of the gate conductive layerrising over the semiconductor substrate is formed to be smaller than theCD of the recessed trench; and a capping layer which is formed on thegate conductive layer to have the same CD as that of the gate conductivelayer. This MOSFET can further comprise spacers surrounding thesidewalls of the gate electrode, and a source/drain region formed in thesemiconductor substrate on both sides of the gate electrode so as to beinsulated from the gate conductive layer by the gate oxide layer.

Additionally, it is preferable that the recessed trench has roundprofile. The gate oxide layer may be composed of a silicon oxide layer,a titanium oxide layer, or a tantalum oxide layer. The gate conductivelayer may comprise a conductive polysilicon layer that completely fillsthe recessed trench and a metal layer formed thereon. The spacers may beextended into the semiconductor substrate to a depth of 500 .ANG. orless.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method offorming a MOSFET having a recessed channel is provided, which comprisesforming a recessed trench, forming a gate oxide layer on an inner wallof the recessed trench, and sequentially forming a gate conductive layerand a capping layer on the gate oxide layer so as to completely fill therecessed trench. Then, the capping layer and the gate conductive layer,which both rise over the semiconductor substrate, are patterned to havea smaller CD than that of the recessed trench. This results in a gateelectrode that inwardly overlaps the gate conductive layer filling therecessed trench. Next, impurity ions are implanted into thesemiconductor substrate on both sides of the gate electrode so as toform a source/drain region.

It is preferred in the present invention that forming the recessedtrench comprises forming a rectangular trench in the semiconductorsubstrate using a reactive ion beam etch (RIE) process, and making theprofile of the recessed trench round by further etching the trench usinga chemical dry etch (CDE) process. The rectangular trench is formed to adepth of about 1000 .ANG. to 1500 .ANG. and is further etched by about100 .ANG. to 200 .ANG. using the CDE process. The method of forming theMOSFET having a recessed channel further comprises forming a sacrificialoxide layer by thermally oxidizing the semiconductor substrate andremoving the sacrificial oxide layer using a wet etch process betweenforming the recessed trench and forming the gate oxide layer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other features of the present invention will become moreapparent by describing in detail preferred embodiments thereof withreference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional MOSFET having arecessed channel; and

FIGS. 2 through 8 are cross-sectional views illustrating a method offabricating a MOSFET having a recessed channel according to anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings in which an embodiment of theinvention is shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in manydifferent forms and should not be construed as being limited to theembodiment set forth herein. Rather, the embodiment is provided so thatthis disclosure is thorough and complete and fully conveys the scope ofthe invention to those skilled in the art, In the drawings, the shapesand forms of elements are exaggerated for clarity.

FIGS. 2 through 8 are cross-sectional views illustrating a method offabricating a MOSFET having a recessed channel according to anembodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, a field ion implantation region 111 is formed in asemiconductor substrate 100 such as a single crystalline siliconsubstrate. A device isolation layer 105 is formed to define an activeregion and an inactive region. The device isolation layer 105 may beformed by a known shallow trench isolation (STI) technique.

Next, a buffer oxide layer 110 is thinly deposited on the semiconductorsubstrate 100 where the field ion implantation region 111 and the deviceisolation layer 105 are formed. Afterwards, with regard to the depth ofa recessed trench to be formed later, an ion implantation region 113,for adjusting a channel, and a surface source/drain region 115 areformed using ion implantation processes. The buffer oxide layer 110 maybe formed of a silicon oxide layer using a conventional method such aschemical vapor deposition (CVD), sub-atmospheric CVD (SACVD), lowpressure CVD (LPCVD), or plasma enhanced CVD (PECVD). Next, aphotoresist layer 120 is formed and patterned to expose a portion of theunderlying device where a recessed channel will later be formed. Thecritical dimension (CD) of the open portion may be about 90 nm.

Referring to FIG. 3, the semiconductor substrate 100 is etched using thephotoresist layer 120 as an etch mask, thereby forming a trench 125having a depth of about 1000 .ANG. to 1500 .ANG. Here, the semiconductorsubstrate 100 may be etched using a conventional RIE process. In priorart, a mask stack having a complicated structure is formed by furtherforming spacers on a silicon nitride mask and then forming a narrowrecessed trench (30 of FIG. 1) using the mask stack. However, in thepresent invention, because the CD of the trench 125 is greater than thatof the conventional structure, the trench 125 can be simply formed usingonly the photoresist layer 120 as an etch mask. This RIE processdescribed above makes the trench 125 have a rectangular profile.

As shown in FIG. 4, the photoresist layer 120 is removed using ashingand stripping, and then the semiconductor substrate 100 is furtherselectively etched by about 100 .ANG. to 200 .ANG. by a CDE processusing O.sub.2 gas and CF.sub.4 gas. The CDE process is performed inorder to remove silicon, which is not etched from edges of the activeregion due to the inclination of the trench, and also to make theprofile of the trench 125 round. As a result, a recessed trench 130having a round profile and a CD of W1 is completed.

Referring to FIG. 5, a sacrificial oxide layer (not shown) is formedusing thermal oxidation to remove etching damage caused by the formationof the trench. Then, the buffer oxide layer 110, which remains afterperforming the steps shown in FIG. 4, is removed using a wet etchprocess along with the sacrificial oxide layer. Here, the wet etchprocess may be performed using an HF diluted solution. For example, themixture ratio of fluoric acid (HF) and deionized water (H.sub.2O) may be1:5-1000 and is maintained at a temperature of 25.+−.3.degree. C. Themixture ratio of the fluoric acid and the deionized water is preferably1:100-200. The buffer oxide layer 110 and the sacrificial oxide layermay also be removed using a buffered oxide etchant (BOE) in place of theHF diluted solution. Afterwards, a gate oxide layer 135 is depositedusing a silicon oxide layer, a titanium oxide layer, or a tantalum oxidelayer. Next, a conductive polysilicon layer 140 is deposited on the gateoxide layer 135. The conductive polysilicon layer 140 may be depositedusing LPCVD at a temperature of 500.degree. C. to 700.degree. C. Formingthe conductive polysilicon layer 140 may comprise depositing an undopedpolysilicon layer and then doping it with arsenic (As) or phosphorus (P)ions using an ion implantation process. Alternatively, the conductivepolysilicon layer 140 may be formed by in-situ doping impurity ions. Theconductive polysilicon layer 140 is planarized using an etchback processor a CMP process. Then a metal layer 145 is further formed on theconductive polysilicon layer 140. The metal layer 145 may be, forexample, W, an alloy of Al and Cu, or Cu. The metal layer 145 may bedeposited using inductively coupled plasma (ICP), ionized metal plasma(IMP), sputtering, or CVD. Here, the stack of the conductive polysiliconlayer 140 and the metal layer 145 constitute a gate conductive layer150. The metal layer 145 can be further formed since it has a lowerresistance than that of the conductive polysilicon layer 140. However,in some cases, the gate conductive layer 150 may be formed of aconductive polysilicon layer and a silicide layer. Alternatively, thegate conductive layer 150 may be formed of only a conductive polysiliconlayer. After that, a capping layer 155 is deposited to protect the gateconductive layer 150 using an insulating material, such as a siliconnitride. If a silicon nitride capping layer is used, it can be depositedusing PECVD or LPCVD. The capping layer 155 is further formed using areaction between SiH.sub.4 and NH.sub.3 at a temperature of about500.degree. C. to 850.degree. C.

Referring to FIG. 6, the capping layer 155 and the gate conductive layer150 are successively patterned using a gate mask. This results in acompleted gate electrode 160, which has a smaller CD W2 than the CD W1of the recessed trench 130. Since the gate electrode 160 is formed to besmaller than the recessed trench 130, the gate electrode 160 isoverlapped by the recessed trench 130. Here, a groove 165 may be formedby recessing the gate conductive layer 150 from the surface of thesemiconductor substrate 100. The depth W3 of the groove 165 can beadjusted to be 500 .ANG. or less by controlling the etching time. Theuniformity of the groove 165 does not affect characteristics of theMOSFET since a source/drain junction region will be formed in thesemiconductor substrate 100 at a depth of about 1000 .ANG., while thegroove depth W3 is only at about 500 .ANG.

Referring to FIG. 7, a gate reoxidation process is performed by exposingthe gate electrode 160 to heat and an oxygen atmosphere. Thus, a thermaloxide layer (not shown) is formed on the sidewalls of the gateconductive layer 150. The reoxidation process leads to removal ofetching damage caused by patterning of the gate electrode 160, removalof residues of the gate conductive layer 150, and formation of areliable gate oxide layer 135. Afterwards, a lightly doped drain (LDD)is formed using n-type impurity ions, which are implanted to form asource/drain region. However, this ion implantation process may beomitted. Next, gate spacers 170, which are made of an insulatingmaterial such as a silicon nitride, are formed using PECVD or LPCVD.

As shown in FIG. 8, the gate spacers 170 are etched using an anisotropicetch process so as to form spacers 170 a on the sidewalls of the gateelectrode 160. Impurity ions are implanted using the spacers 170 a andthe capping layer 155 as an ion implantation mask. This forms asource/drain region 180 in the semiconductor substrate 100. Thesource/drain region 180 is insulated from the gate conductive layer 150by the gate oxide layer 135.

As described above, a MOSFET having a recessed channel according to thepresent invention will have gate electrode 160 overlapped by therecessed trench 130, since the CD W1 of the recessed trench 130 isgreater than the CD W2 of the gate electrode 160. Hereinafter, theMOSFET according to the present invention as shown in FIG. 8 will becompared with the conventional structure of FIG. 1. First, in thepresent invention, the CD W2 of the gate electrode 160 is smaller thanthe CD W1 of the recessed trench 130. Thus, the gate electrode isoverlapped by the recessed trench 130.

In a case where the overlap CD W4 is the same and the CD of the gateelectrode is the same (L2=W2), the CD W1 of the recessed trench 130according to the present invention is 4 times the overlap CD W4 as largeas the CD L1 of the conventional recessed trench 30.

Also, as shown in FIG. 8, in the present invention, the effectivechannel length W5 is longer compared to that of the conventionalstructure. This is because the size of the recessed trench 130 becomeslarger than the conventional structure. As a result, a reduction in achannel region, caused by high integration, can be effectivelycompensated for. Thus, a short channel effect and a punch-throughphenomenon can be prevented, which leads to improved characteristics ofa device.

In an upper edge of the recessed trench 130, which corresponds to aportion denoted by reference numeral 70 in FIG. 1, the crowding of anelectric field can be alleviated, thus reducing leakage current and alsomaintaining the breakdown voltage at a constant level.

Also, in FIG. 8, as the groove 165 is formed, an overlap region of thesource/drain junction and the gate electrode is reduced as much as thedepth W3 of the groove 165. Thus, overlap capacitance and gate induceddrain leakage (GIDL) can be reduced as compared to the conventionalstructure.

Further, the conventional structure requires an additional mask, i.e., asilicon nitride mask where spacers are further formed, unlikeembodiments of the present invention, in which the trench can be etchedusing only a photoresist layer. As a result, electric properties of theMOSFET can be improved and the MOSFET can be highly integrated.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and describedwith reference to an embodiment thereof, it will be understood by thoseof ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and detailsmay be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention as defined by the following claims.

1. A MOSFET on a semiconductor substrate having a trench, the MOSFETincluding: a gate dielectric layer formed on a sidewall and a bottom ofthe trench; a conductive polysilicon layer filling the trench; a metallayer on the conductive polysilicon layer, the metal layer being outsidethe trench; and a capping insulating layer on the metal layer, wherein awidth of the conductive polysilicon layer is greater than a width of themetal layer, and wherein a width of the capping insulating layer issubstantially the same as a width of the metal layer.
 2. The MOSFET ofclaim 1, wherein the conductive polysilicon layer has a first portionrising over the semiconductor substrate, a second portion filling thetrench, wherein the first portion has a smaller width than the secondportion.
 3. The MOSFET of claim 1, wherein a width of the cappinginsulating layer is smaller than a width of the conductive polysiliconlayer.
 4. The MOSFET of claim 1, further comprising spacers extendingfrom a top surface of the conductive polysilicon layer to sidewalls ofthe metal layer.
 5. The MOSFET of claim 1, wherein the trench has roundprofile.
 6. The MOSFET of claim 1, wherein the metal layer includes atleast one selected from the group consisting of W, Cu, an alloy of Aland Cu, and metal silicide.
 7. The MOSFET of claim 1, wherein thecapping insulating layer includes silicon nitride.
 8. A MOSFET on asemiconductor substrate having a first trench, the MOSFET including: adevice isolation layer defining an active region where the first trenchis formed; a gate dielectric layer formed on a sidewall and a bottom ofthe first trench; a first conductive polysilicon layer filling the firsttrench; a second conductive polysilicon layer on the device isolationlayer; and a metal layer on the first conductive polysilicon layer, themetal layer being outside the first trench, wherein a width of the firstconductive polysilicon layer is greater than a width of the metal layer,wherein a depth of the first conductive polysilicon layer is greaterthan a depth of the second conductive polysilicon layer.
 9. The MOSFETof claim 8, wherein the device isolation layer includes a second trenchformed therein, and a depth of the second trench is smaller than a depthof the first trench.
 10. The MOSFET of claim 9, the second trench isfilled with the second conductive polysilicon.
 11. The MOSFET of claim8, wherein the first conductive polysilicon layer has a first portionrising over the semiconductor substrate, a second portion filling thetrench, wherein the first portion has a smaller width than the secondportion.
 12. The MOSFET of claim 8, further comprising a cappinginsulating layer on the metal layer, wherein a width of the cappinginsulating layer is smaller than a width of the first conductivepolysilicon layer.
 13. The MOSFET of claim 12, wherein a width of thecapping insulating layer is substantially same with a width of the metallayer.
 14. The MOSFET of claim 8, further comprising spacers extendingfrom a top surface of the first conductive polysilicon layer tosidewalls of the metal layer.
 15. The MOSFET of claim 8, wherein thefirst trench has round profile.
 16. The MOSFET of claim 8, wherein themetal layer includes at least one selected from the group consisting ofW, Cu, an alloy of Al and Cu, and metal silicide.
 17. The MOSFET ofclaim 8, wherein the capping insulating layer includes silicon nitride.18. A MOSFET on a semiconductor substrate having a first trench, theMOSFET including: a device isolation layer defining an active regionwhere the first trench is formed, the device isolation layer including asecond trench formed therein; a gate dielectric layer formed on asidewall and a bottom of the first trench; a first conductivepolysilicon layer filling the first trench; a second conductivepolysilicon layer filling the second trench; and metal layers on thefirst and second conductive polysilicon layers, the metal layer beingoutside the first and second trenches, wherein a width of the first andsecond conductive polysilicon layers is greater than a width of themetal layers.